So I've pretty much decided to do a Vito Russo on this whole thing. I've been trawling book lists on the intenet, and I have over 100 starting in 1962 (well, it's a dystopia). That's only for gay major characters, though. Many other books have a small queer presence that you don't notice unless you're twleve years old and desperately searching for some confirmation of your identity. Most of the following I read before I was out, and I (somewhat subconsciously) kept a mental checklist of every gay character and incident that I read about.
A Brief Timeline of Queer Content in Fantasy Literature
The 70's
1977 - The Farthest Shore, by Ursula K. LeGuin
From everything I know about LeGuin, there's a lot of queer stuff in her books. I've only read The Left Hand of Darkness (gender-bending aliens) and the Earthsea trilogy (wizards 'n' shit). The third book in the Earthsea trilogy, The Farthest Shore, has a very strange relationship between Arren, the teenage prince, and Ged, the Archmage who is...I'm not sure how old. Fiftyish? The text says quite clearly that Arren is "in love" with Ged. This is the 70's, so I'm assuming it passed under the radar because people didn't take it literally and nothing sexual happens or is implied. But it seems to be somewhat reciprocated, as when Arren is captured by slavers, Ged whips out the big magics in a "You don't fuck with my prince" gesture.
The 80's
1983 was a big year. Diane Duane published So You Want To Be A Wizard, though I never realized the Advisory wizards were a gay couple until I read about it on Tropes. It was a big "Oh! So that's why they live together!" revelatory moment. We also have McCaffery's Pern novel, Moreta, where the implications that riders of green dragons are gay are more or less confirmed. And finally, Marion Zimmer Bradley's The Mists of Avalon, a feminist retelling of the King Arthur legends (it wasn't that bad, if I recall), has a scene where Arthur, Lancelot, and Guinivere have a threesome, and Lancelot gets a bit preoccupied with Arthur. Kind of a Big-Lipped Alligator Moment, as it doesn't really add anything to the plot, or develop into a subplot. And, while I'm at it, I may as well throw in Alanna, by Tamora Pierce. I need to reread those, but apparently the main character's brother has a thing with the villain (and subsequently turns evil), which got toned down when the publisher decided to market the book For The Children.
1987 - Arrows of the Queen, by Mercedes Lackey
"Look! Lesbians!" is about all that happens, with regards to the queer content. Oh, there's some subplot in the end where the one lover dies, and they hook up the survivor with the random girl who had an unrequited crush on her. Like, right after the first lover dies, and the survivor is in telepathic shock. There is also a moment when the lesbian character is talking to the main character, and is like "You're chill that we're lesbians, right?" and the main character's reaction is "Oh yeah, I'm from a patriarchal polygamist society. We had lots of lesbianism going on behind the men's backs." So...progressive? They are out of the closet, at least.
The 90's
1990 - The Eye of the World (Book 1 of The Wheel of Time), by Robert Jordan
These you have to do a close reading for, and I don't think I have time. A few times, he mentions some of the (all-female) magic users are "pillow friends." Apparently, that means lesbians. I don't even remember which ones were, though; no one important. They're just kind of there.
1993 - Hexwood, by Diana Wynne Jones
Very, very minor, but it's Jones and I love her and I just have to mention it. There are two "gay boys who run the wine shop" in the town. And they have an annoying dog. That's all that's said about them. They're never given names. But hey, now we're using the word gay. And they're not evil or tragic or closeted. Or important...
1996 - Stone of Tears (Book 2 of The Sword of Truth), by Terry Goodkind
"Look! Lesbians!" even more than Lackey. One spends a chapter giving the main character her life story, including a page dedicated to her relationship with another female character (whose backstory is not given, and she subsequently dies tragically in her lover's arms during the Plague Episode). Considering that in Book 1, the one homosexual character was a muderous pedophile, I think this is progress.
1997 - Harry Potter and the Sorceror's/Philosopher's Stone, by J.K. Rowling
Yeah, remember? Dumbledore is gay. So, so closeted, though. You can tell there's subtext in book 7, with Grindelwald. I thought I was just slashing, but Word of Gay confirmed in '07. We may have just taken a step back; however, this is a children's book series, and hugely popular, so any presence at all is not to be scorned.
1997 - Sandry's Book (Book 1 of the Circle of Magic), by Tamora Pierce
More closeted children's book characters! Same with So You Want To Be A Wizard. I forget if I read about it on Tropes or found out through The Will of the Empress. I think it was Tropes. Rereading those books now, there's sort of contradictory subtext. In Book 1, Lark calls Rosethorn "Rosie" and in Book 2, it's explicity stated that they sleep in separate rooms. If I had been ten and allowed the possibility that I could grow up and marry a woman, high school would have been a lot less stressful. And if I had figured this out when I was writing my paper on LGBT content in children's literature my freshman year of college, I could probably have added another page.
The 21st Century
2000 - Storm Front (Book 1 of the Dresden Files), by Jim Butcher
There's a random bisexual hooker in Book 1, and random references to the fact that homosexuality exists throughout the series, though no important characters are actually gay. Except maybe the vampires. Still, I appreciate a straight writer acknowledging that homosexuality exists in his universe (our universe), instead of either having a straight universe or a token queer.
2002 - Abarat, by Clive Barker
Clive Barker is the queer Stephen King. I don't mean gay (though he is), I mean queer. Stephen King writes staight horror; vampires in Maine, psychic powers at the prom, etc. Barker writes queer horror, which basically means he's about ten times weirder than King. A vampire that feeds on time instead of blood, or, as in Abarat, a high-schooler who is whisked away to a bizarre archipelago. One of the side characters has a male partner and a bunch of dogs. Probably supposed to be an author avatar, except Barker and his partner broke up while he was writing the third book. Incidentally, he also had health problems that resulted in a brief coma. No wonder it took him 9 years to finish book 3.
2003 - Wolves of the Calla (The Dark Tower, Book 5), by Stephen King
And speaking of Stephen King...Father Callahan (of Salem's Lot) is gay! Ish. He had an awkward man-crush in his backstory/interimstory. Interpret that how you will.
2006 - The Book of Lost Things, by John Connelly
I just had to include this right after Dark Tower. It's a sort of grown-up fractured fairy tale, where a kid (it's not a kid's book) gets whisked into a world of fairy tales and classic literature. One of the people his meets is Childe Roland of the poem (was it Browning?). The same Roland that King's Dark Tower series is based on. And this Roland is gay; he had a thing with a fellow knight who died and so now he's on a quest for...redemption or something. But gay Roland just makes me lol.
2009 - Best Served Cold, by Joe Abercrombie
I suspect there might be more in his trilogy, but in this stand-alone novel, one of the...villains, I guess...is gay. Which seems likes a step back, but every character in the book is morally suspect - the protagonist is a mercenary on a vengeance quest. The villains are all quite well fleshed-out, and no correlation is drawn between the one character's sexuality and his villainness. In fact, I believe he is a general, so he's a big important gay, which is positive in a way.
2010 - The Last Hunt, by Bruce Coville
Yeah, this one is kind of cheating because no one is actually gay. There is a beautiful bromance, which I don't count as queer, but since it borders on ho yay, one of the characters actually asks if they are a couple (in a non-homophobic, just curious way). He gives a "No - not that there's anything wrong with that" answer. Coville directly addresses the homoeroticism of a bromance...in a children's book! So which is better? Having gay characters without saying that they're gay, or having characters who aren't gay explicitly support homosexuality?
Conclusion: Over the past forty or so years, representations of gay characters in fantasy have become more open. Even if they are not outed in-universe (and that's mostly just in children's books), the authors have no problem saying their intent. I would hesitate to claim that representations have become more postitive. I would say, just from this sample, that they have grown less positive but more realistic. Not all gay people are morally sound staunch sidekicks, after all.
It occurred to me the other day that people complain the gay characters always die, but - in fantasy, at least - that might have a closer correlation with the fact that gay characters are always minor supporting characters, who have a higher mortality rate than the main cast or heroes. The solution, then, would not be to help gay characters live longer, happier lives, but to give them more important roles so that they can have longer, happier lives. Or have more than just the one token gay. But, long hours of research and many, many books stand between me and any solid conclusions.
Showing posts with label Lesbian. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lesbian. Show all posts
Sunday, July 8, 2012
Thursday, July 5, 2012
(Bottom) Top 13 Queer Fantasy Novels - Part 1
I can't believe I haven't done one of these before. Then I started putting together a top ten, and realized that I only had 13 to choose from. So I decided to just include them all
This list consists only of books I have read. I have not read Fleweling's Lark on the Wing or Hambly's Darkmage, or Duane's Door Into Fire, so I can't judge where to put them on the list. At some point, if I want to be the fantasy lit Vito Russo, I might track down the rest of the books, but for now, this is what is in my repertoire.
Criteria for "Queer Fantasy": Must have a queer protagonist or major character. Queer character must be out in-universe - no Dumbledore. Also, must be human. Vampire lesbians are cheating.
13. City of Bones (2007) - Cassandra Clare
Character: Alec, the gay sidekick.
Queer Context: Real world-ish. There’s an underground clique of demon-hunters, and it’s implied that they would be very not happy if they knew Alec was gay. He’s kind of a straight gay, and hooks up with the one other gay character in the story, who is a flaming glittery gay mage, after minimal off-page courtship. They have nothing in common except being the only two gay characters in the story. Also, the story begins with him having a crush on his stepbrother, the male lead Jace, who gives Alec a pep talk and tells Alec that he isn’t really in love with him, he just likes to torture himself by falling in love with unattainable people. And the main cast seems to be chill that Alec is gay, but no one overtly supports him, they just see it as a nonissue. I’d be upset with the way the gay romance subplot was handled, except that the main romance subplot was just as bad; there’s an incest scare, but it turns out it was all a misunderstanding. That’s the best obstacle you could give their relationship? That’s totally relatable.
LGBTQ-friendly rating: B-. Clare at least tries, and Alec is a positive character, if not actually an accurate representation of anything.
12. Ash (2009) - Malinda Lo
Character: Ash, a lesbian Cinderella.
Queer Context: Queer retelling of Cinderella. Only I feel cheated because I was expecting her to hook up with a princess, and instead she hooks up with the Huntress, which is a completely created role and not really kosher. And then she breaks a curse by sleeping with a (male?) fairy thing, which is really not feminist. I mean, gaining independence from the male presence by submitting to it? Solving problems with prostitution.
I don’t remember how people react to their relationship; I think it’s one of those worlds where homosexuality in society is not talked about, and so I have no idea if Ash had any context for understanding her desires.
LGBTQ-friendly rating: C+. There's no context for the lesbian relationship, which makes it hard to relate to. Also, the end with the fairy.
11. Wolfcry (2006) - Amelia Atwater-Rhodes
Character: Oliza, the shapeshifter princess. Has some really scary genetics, but conveniently ends up in a non-procreative relationship with a woman. Each book in the series has a different viewpoint character, and this one is hers.
Queer Context: Not given in the previous three books or even foreshadowed in this one. Just all of a sudden the princess is gay, and mostly everyone’s fine with it. Do they allow gay marriage? What are the social stigmas? No other characters are gay, and no word for gay is given. I assume the author knows more than was revealed in the books; she has a wife, and I usually like to know the queer context of anything I write. Granted, I usually end up with queer characters.
LGBTQ-friendly rating: B. Oliza isn't tokenized at all, and it's obvious she was a character first and became queer in the writing. It's just a little sudden and lacking in context.
10. Tithe (2002) - Holly Black
Character: Corny, the gay sidekick. In later books, his boyfriend Luis, and lesbian sidekick Ruth.
Queer Context: Real world. With fairies. Black is one of those authors who makes sure some of her characters are gay, because some people are gay. Always the unwaveringly supportive sidekicks, though. Yay for helpful minorities.
LGBTQ-friendly rating: B. Corny was based on Black's gay friends, who are geek-gays and not flaming queens, and he's a fairly well-fleshed out character.
9. Magic’s Pawn (1989) - Mercedes Lackey
Character: Vanyel, the only gay Herald who actually does anything interesting.
Queer Context: Lackey always tries to include a random queer in every book. Someone once called her out on having way more gay men than lesbians. She counted them up and said they were actually about even. However, only two of her queer characters achieve major character status, and both are gay men. Homosexuality is severely stigmatized by wider society, but any named character who is “good” is fine with it. Nor are the parameters for the stigma clearly defined; vaguely religious, but considering it’s a massive fantasyland pantheon, you’d think there would be some variation. Also, this is one of Lackey’s few stories where the protagonist dies at the end, and it’s the gay one. However, I find her tragedies are at least slightly better than her happy endings. Oh, and there are the random forest people who seem to be universally pansexual, and a gay couple of the forest people serve a sort of mentor function for Vanyel. And the other gay major character, Firesong (in later books) is also of the forest people. The people in “bad” countries are more homophobic than in the “good” countries.
LGBTQ-friendly rating: C. Because it's 80's, and preachy. In the context of the 80's, I would give it an A for effort, though. And the other major gay is a flaming queen.
8. The Will of the Empress (2005) - Tamora Pierce
Character: Daja, the lady blacksmith mage, has a sexual revelation when she is kissed by a woman.
Queer Context: The first series was originally published in the 90’s. The characters were ten, but they were being raised by a lesbian couple, who I did not realize was a lesbian couple until I read this book and they directly referenced it. I wish they had been more out in the earlier books, that I read when I was ten; it would have made my life a lot simpler. One thing I do like about it is that it includes a queer protagonist by retcon in a children’s book; me reading those books as a child and then reading the later one after coming out was a rather validating experience. Even though the queer character is like “I had no idea I was gay” and you’d think being raised by a lesbian couple she’d have enough context to figure herself out. Really, it’s the author deciding to make her gay a decade later when society has progressed enough and it’s in a YA novel. Because Pierce is another who makes sure to include gay minor characters all the time.
LGBTQ-friendly rating: B+. Lark and Rosethorn spent the 90's in the closet, and I resent them for that. Also, because since the author obviously decided "They've hit puberty! Let's make one gay!" she decided the butch blacksmith should be a dyke, and not the feisty seamstress or the grouchy bookworm. I will say, though, I really appreciate the character existing in a non-queer context first; so many gay characters (in fantasy and out) are introduced at puberty when they are struggling with sqhishy hormonal feelings. Yes, we were once kids too.
Coming soon: 1-7. What are my favorite gay fantasy novels?
This list consists only of books I have read. I have not read Fleweling's Lark on the Wing or Hambly's Darkmage, or Duane's Door Into Fire, so I can't judge where to put them on the list. At some point, if I want to be the fantasy lit Vito Russo, I might track down the rest of the books, but for now, this is what is in my repertoire.
Criteria for "Queer Fantasy": Must have a queer protagonist or major character. Queer character must be out in-universe - no Dumbledore. Also, must be human. Vampire lesbians are cheating.
13. City of Bones (2007) - Cassandra Clare
Character: Alec, the gay sidekick.
Queer Context: Real world-ish. There’s an underground clique of demon-hunters, and it’s implied that they would be very not happy if they knew Alec was gay. He’s kind of a straight gay, and hooks up with the one other gay character in the story, who is a flaming glittery gay mage, after minimal off-page courtship. They have nothing in common except being the only two gay characters in the story. Also, the story begins with him having a crush on his stepbrother, the male lead Jace, who gives Alec a pep talk and tells Alec that he isn’t really in love with him, he just likes to torture himself by falling in love with unattainable people. And the main cast seems to be chill that Alec is gay, but no one overtly supports him, they just see it as a nonissue. I’d be upset with the way the gay romance subplot was handled, except that the main romance subplot was just as bad; there’s an incest scare, but it turns out it was all a misunderstanding. That’s the best obstacle you could give their relationship? That’s totally relatable.
LGBTQ-friendly rating: B-. Clare at least tries, and Alec is a positive character, if not actually an accurate representation of anything.
12. Ash (2009) - Malinda Lo
Character: Ash, a lesbian Cinderella.
Queer Context: Queer retelling of Cinderella. Only I feel cheated because I was expecting her to hook up with a princess, and instead she hooks up with the Huntress, which is a completely created role and not really kosher. And then she breaks a curse by sleeping with a (male?) fairy thing, which is really not feminist. I mean, gaining independence from the male presence by submitting to it? Solving problems with prostitution.
I don’t remember how people react to their relationship; I think it’s one of those worlds where homosexuality in society is not talked about, and so I have no idea if Ash had any context for understanding her desires.
LGBTQ-friendly rating: C+. There's no context for the lesbian relationship, which makes it hard to relate to. Also, the end with the fairy.
11. Wolfcry (2006) - Amelia Atwater-Rhodes
Character: Oliza, the shapeshifter princess. Has some really scary genetics, but conveniently ends up in a non-procreative relationship with a woman. Each book in the series has a different viewpoint character, and this one is hers.
Queer Context: Not given in the previous three books or even foreshadowed in this one. Just all of a sudden the princess is gay, and mostly everyone’s fine with it. Do they allow gay marriage? What are the social stigmas? No other characters are gay, and no word for gay is given. I assume the author knows more than was revealed in the books; she has a wife, and I usually like to know the queer context of anything I write. Granted, I usually end up with queer characters.
LGBTQ-friendly rating: B. Oliza isn't tokenized at all, and it's obvious she was a character first and became queer in the writing. It's just a little sudden and lacking in context.
10. Tithe (2002) - Holly Black
Character: Corny, the gay sidekick. In later books, his boyfriend Luis, and lesbian sidekick Ruth.
Queer Context: Real world. With fairies. Black is one of those authors who makes sure some of her characters are gay, because some people are gay. Always the unwaveringly supportive sidekicks, though. Yay for helpful minorities.
LGBTQ-friendly rating: B. Corny was based on Black's gay friends, who are geek-gays and not flaming queens, and he's a fairly well-fleshed out character.
9. Magic’s Pawn (1989) - Mercedes Lackey
Character: Vanyel, the only gay Herald who actually does anything interesting.
Queer Context: Lackey always tries to include a random queer in every book. Someone once called her out on having way more gay men than lesbians. She counted them up and said they were actually about even. However, only two of her queer characters achieve major character status, and both are gay men. Homosexuality is severely stigmatized by wider society, but any named character who is “good” is fine with it. Nor are the parameters for the stigma clearly defined; vaguely religious, but considering it’s a massive fantasyland pantheon, you’d think there would be some variation. Also, this is one of Lackey’s few stories where the protagonist dies at the end, and it’s the gay one. However, I find her tragedies are at least slightly better than her happy endings. Oh, and there are the random forest people who seem to be universally pansexual, and a gay couple of the forest people serve a sort of mentor function for Vanyel. And the other gay major character, Firesong (in later books) is also of the forest people. The people in “bad” countries are more homophobic than in the “good” countries.
LGBTQ-friendly rating: C. Because it's 80's, and preachy. In the context of the 80's, I would give it an A for effort, though. And the other major gay is a flaming queen.
8. The Will of the Empress (2005) - Tamora Pierce
Character: Daja, the lady blacksmith mage, has a sexual revelation when she is kissed by a woman.
Queer Context: The first series was originally published in the 90’s. The characters were ten, but they were being raised by a lesbian couple, who I did not realize was a lesbian couple until I read this book and they directly referenced it. I wish they had been more out in the earlier books, that I read when I was ten; it would have made my life a lot simpler. One thing I do like about it is that it includes a queer protagonist by retcon in a children’s book; me reading those books as a child and then reading the later one after coming out was a rather validating experience. Even though the queer character is like “I had no idea I was gay” and you’d think being raised by a lesbian couple she’d have enough context to figure herself out. Really, it’s the author deciding to make her gay a decade later when society has progressed enough and it’s in a YA novel. Because Pierce is another who makes sure to include gay minor characters all the time.
LGBTQ-friendly rating: B+. Lark and Rosethorn spent the 90's in the closet, and I resent them for that. Also, because since the author obviously decided "They've hit puberty! Let's make one gay!" she decided the butch blacksmith should be a dyke, and not the feisty seamstress or the grouchy bookworm. I will say, though, I really appreciate the character existing in a non-queer context first; so many gay characters (in fantasy and out) are introduced at puberty when they are struggling with sqhishy hormonal feelings. Yes, we were once kids too.
Coming soon: 1-7. What are my favorite gay fantasy novels?
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
San Francisco - Final Days
Yeah, I've lost count of how many days I was there. 13, according to the calendar.
Movies:
"Children of Srikandi" - a bold experimental documentary about queer women (lesbian, bisexual, transgender, etc.) in Indonesia. An interesting concept, but poorly executed. Eight different women told eight different stories eight different ways without any sort of explanation of what was going on. It was also scripted. A good documentary, but no "Kuchu."
"Unforgiveable" - a French movie set in Venice about some very tangled relationships between an older man, his younger wife, her ex-girlfriend, and the ex-girlfriend's teenage son. Quirky and fun until the dog gets killed.
"Transgender Tuesdays" - an amateur but well-made documentary about the first public clinic to offer health care and hormones for transgender people. The most enthusiastic audience ever. I think most of them had some connection to the clinic, as it was/is in San Francisco. Lots of good historical background on the trans community as well.
"Wordly Women" - a shorts program featuring lesbian films from all over the world. They were all about sex, or were weird. Or both. I did not feel represented.
"Let My People Go!" - Jewish comedy + French comedy + gay comedy + dysfunctional family comedy = the funniest movie I have ever seen.
"Cloudburst" - an elderly lesbian couple breaks out of a nursing home, aiming for the Canadian border so they can finally get married. A hysterical romp with a bittersweet ending. See, everyone loves crazy old ladies; these ones just happen to be a couple.
Best moment:
I really really wanted a Frameline t-shirt, partly for the memories and partly because the slogan was "Find your story," and I thought that was really appropriate. By the time I actually got around to buying one, though, they were out of smalls and mediums. "Are you a filmmaker?" the woman selling them asked me. I looked down at my camera bag, which I carried with me everywhere.
"Kind of," I answered. "I'm from the University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire..."
The woman thrust a Large t-shirt at me. "Take it," she said. "Don't pay for it. We love you guys, and we really appreciate you coming all the way out here."
So what could I do but take the shirt and thank her as many times as I could?
Pride:
Because this is still a class, our professors told us to think about the concept of power while we were at Pride. I didn't actually make it to the PrideFest, but I was in the Trans March and the Dyke March, and saw the Pride Parade.
The Trans March:
I was shocked at how many people were there. I mean, I care about transpeople, but I didn't realize that so many other people did. And then when the march started, I was completely overwhelmed by the sense of solidarity and activism and pride. It was glorious, even if I did get overstimulated from the crowd.
The Dyke March:
If the Trans March was so wonderful, then the Dyke March should be even better, because these are actually my people, right? No. That was the biggest disappointment the trip. See, I love my gay male friends, and I love my pansexual female friends, but sometimes I feel like I'm the only lesbian in the world. And then when I do encounter lesbians, in books or film or at the Dyke March, I feel no connection. Am I still a lesbian if I don't go to bars and pick up chicks for one-night stands and dance in the street without a shirt? I have not found a single lesbian image that I can connect with, which might be why I sometimes act bisexual; because even though that's not what I identify as, it's who I identify with. Maybe I'm bisexual-sexual.
This is all very confusing.
The Pride March:
In addition to Pride, there is also a group called Gay Shame, and I'm starting to agree with their stance even if I think they really need a new name. OccuPride is another similar group that seems to be doing better, though. Both these groups are against the corporatization of Pride.
Pride disgusts me a little. It's just a big gay block party. And yes, it's great that we can celebrate out identity, and sexuality is inherently sexual, but...let's think about power for a minute. Why do so many corporations have floats in the parade? It's because even though we are a minority and a marginalized population, we have power. Not only buying power ourselves, but we have enough allies that it is for the most part no longer socially acceptable to be a homophobe. It's no coincidence Obama voices support for gay marriage just before election season. He said he supported it the first time he got elected; is he really giving us more than empty words, and are we content to accept them because he says them in his beautiful black Morgan Freeman voice? (I have a joke theory that Morgan Freeman was a catalyst for Obama being elected, because he taught our generation love the sound of a black man's voice).
Now let's go back to gay power. We've come a long way since Stonewall, since reclaiming the streets, since the rage of ACT UP and the AIDS epidemic. It's illegal to kill us and legal for us to have sex, and most of us our content with that. We're complacent. We have some rights, we have our annual party, and we've lost the will to fight for more. We have forgotten that we have power, and we've forgotten how to use it. We used to march for rights, to save our lives and our jobs and our friends, to spur the government to action against AIDS (the political history of AIDS is actually very interesting). Now we march because we can, because we want to get drunk and take our clothes off.
See, what really disgusts me about Pride is not how wildly everyone parties; it's because this is the one time a year people can feel comfortable celebrating being gay, and most of them feel like it is enough. It is because this day manifests 364 days of repression, and what if we could be gay every day? I don't think Pride is enough; I think it's mainstream America trying to appease us. I think it's time we take back our power and use it for marriage reform, immigration reform, global rights, am I forgetting anything? Am I still coherent? I'm not all the way finished with this think, so I might not end up where I intended. I'm not trying to say that you should stop your annual party (though personally I'd be happy with that, but I'm not a partier and I try to respect people who are), but I don't think you should be content with that. That party is a symbol of power, and I don't think you should let that power go during the rest of the year.
Movies:
"Children of Srikandi" - a bold experimental documentary about queer women (lesbian, bisexual, transgender, etc.) in Indonesia. An interesting concept, but poorly executed. Eight different women told eight different stories eight different ways without any sort of explanation of what was going on. It was also scripted. A good documentary, but no "Kuchu."
"Unforgiveable" - a French movie set in Venice about some very tangled relationships between an older man, his younger wife, her ex-girlfriend, and the ex-girlfriend's teenage son. Quirky and fun until the dog gets killed.
"Transgender Tuesdays" - an amateur but well-made documentary about the first public clinic to offer health care and hormones for transgender people. The most enthusiastic audience ever. I think most of them had some connection to the clinic, as it was/is in San Francisco. Lots of good historical background on the trans community as well.
"Wordly Women" - a shorts program featuring lesbian films from all over the world. They were all about sex, or were weird. Or both. I did not feel represented.
"Let My People Go!" - Jewish comedy + French comedy + gay comedy + dysfunctional family comedy = the funniest movie I have ever seen.
"Cloudburst" - an elderly lesbian couple breaks out of a nursing home, aiming for the Canadian border so they can finally get married. A hysterical romp with a bittersweet ending. See, everyone loves crazy old ladies; these ones just happen to be a couple.
Best moment:
I really really wanted a Frameline t-shirt, partly for the memories and partly because the slogan was "Find your story," and I thought that was really appropriate. By the time I actually got around to buying one, though, they were out of smalls and mediums. "Are you a filmmaker?" the woman selling them asked me. I looked down at my camera bag, which I carried with me everywhere.
"Kind of," I answered. "I'm from the University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire..."
The woman thrust a Large t-shirt at me. "Take it," she said. "Don't pay for it. We love you guys, and we really appreciate you coming all the way out here."
So what could I do but take the shirt and thank her as many times as I could?
Pride:
Because this is still a class, our professors told us to think about the concept of power while we were at Pride. I didn't actually make it to the PrideFest, but I was in the Trans March and the Dyke March, and saw the Pride Parade.
The Trans March:
I was shocked at how many people were there. I mean, I care about transpeople, but I didn't realize that so many other people did. And then when the march started, I was completely overwhelmed by the sense of solidarity and activism and pride. It was glorious, even if I did get overstimulated from the crowd.
The Dyke March:
If the Trans March was so wonderful, then the Dyke March should be even better, because these are actually my people, right? No. That was the biggest disappointment the trip. See, I love my gay male friends, and I love my pansexual female friends, but sometimes I feel like I'm the only lesbian in the world. And then when I do encounter lesbians, in books or film or at the Dyke March, I feel no connection. Am I still a lesbian if I don't go to bars and pick up chicks for one-night stands and dance in the street without a shirt? I have not found a single lesbian image that I can connect with, which might be why I sometimes act bisexual; because even though that's not what I identify as, it's who I identify with. Maybe I'm bisexual-sexual.
This is all very confusing.
The Pride March:
In addition to Pride, there is also a group called Gay Shame, and I'm starting to agree with their stance even if I think they really need a new name. OccuPride is another similar group that seems to be doing better, though. Both these groups are against the corporatization of Pride.
Pride disgusts me a little. It's just a big gay block party. And yes, it's great that we can celebrate out identity, and sexuality is inherently sexual, but...let's think about power for a minute. Why do so many corporations have floats in the parade? It's because even though we are a minority and a marginalized population, we have power. Not only buying power ourselves, but we have enough allies that it is for the most part no longer socially acceptable to be a homophobe. It's no coincidence Obama voices support for gay marriage just before election season. He said he supported it the first time he got elected; is he really giving us more than empty words, and are we content to accept them because he says them in his beautiful black Morgan Freeman voice? (I have a joke theory that Morgan Freeman was a catalyst for Obama being elected, because he taught our generation love the sound of a black man's voice).
Now let's go back to gay power. We've come a long way since Stonewall, since reclaiming the streets, since the rage of ACT UP and the AIDS epidemic. It's illegal to kill us and legal for us to have sex, and most of us our content with that. We're complacent. We have some rights, we have our annual party, and we've lost the will to fight for more. We have forgotten that we have power, and we've forgotten how to use it. We used to march for rights, to save our lives and our jobs and our friends, to spur the government to action against AIDS (the political history of AIDS is actually very interesting). Now we march because we can, because we want to get drunk and take our clothes off.
See, what really disgusts me about Pride is not how wildly everyone parties; it's because this is the one time a year people can feel comfortable celebrating being gay, and most of them feel like it is enough. It is because this day manifests 364 days of repression, and what if we could be gay every day? I don't think Pride is enough; I think it's mainstream America trying to appease us. I think it's time we take back our power and use it for marriage reform, immigration reform, global rights, am I forgetting anything? Am I still coherent? I'm not all the way finished with this think, so I might not end up where I intended. I'm not trying to say that you should stop your annual party (though personally I'd be happy with that, but I'm not a partier and I try to respect people who are), but I don't think you should be content with that. That party is a symbol of power, and I don't think you should let that power go during the rest of the year.
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